More than 8,600 Inland Empire Kaiser Permanente Workers Vote to Authorize Strike

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Fri., Sept. 19, 2025
Contact: Chelsey Engel, cengel@usw.org, 412-212-8173

(Fontana, Calif.) – More than 8,600 Kaiser Permanente health care workers across the Inland Empire voted overwhelmingly this week to authorize their union, USW Local 7600, to call a strike if necessary in ongoing contract negotiations.

“We are still far apart on reaching agreements over vital issues like patient care and wages,” said Local 7600 President Michael Barnett. “A strike is never something anyone wants to do or takes lightly, but our members made it clear this week that they’re ready to take this step if Kaiser continues to ignore workers’ voices.”

Local bargaining between USW Local 7600 and Kaiser Permanente began in April, while national bargaining, led by the Alliance of Health Care Unions (AHCU), started in May. AHCU is a federation of 23 local unions representing more than 60,000 Kaiser Permanente employees nationwide.

Contracts covering these Kaiser workers – including nurses, therapists, technicians, lab staff, service and technical workers, and other frontline professionals – are set to expire September 30 or October 1. So far, unions representing 46,000 Kaiser employees in California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia have voted to authorize strikes.

The strike authorization votes do not mean a walkout is certain, but they give union leadership the power to call a strike once current contracts expire.

“Kaiser says we are among the best and most committed workers in the industry,” said Barnett. “We will keep fighting until we get a contract that reflects that.”

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